Unfeeling
by broken.ningyo
Summary: Persona 3 Spoilers: December 2nd, 1999. Complete.
1. Side: Minato

December 2nd, 1999.  
Side: Minato

Disclaimer : Persona 3 and it's respective characters belong to Atlus.

* * *

It took him a long time to register that he was all alone. 

He had sat up among the white sheets, and had tried to pick up whatever he could from what the man in white said. Evening light had filtered in through the blinds, apparently opened by the petite lady that had followed the man in. She was in a soft, pink uniform, keeping a file close to her chest. He had not really remembered how she looked like, but what was clear was the look in her eyes: they tell of pity. Too much of it. She was the reason why he kept his eyes plastered to the man speaking, instead. He did not see anything after the middle aged man stopped talking and the two hurried towards him.

Xxxxxxxx

Dad was smiling. Mum gave a heartful laughter. All was well when we went to Paulownian Mall for supper; my parents treated me to my favourite takoyaki there, after watching a movie together. The moon was bright and full that night, as if it was there to bless our small family that was enjoying whatever happinest we could find. Along with the light mood came the appetite to appreciate the takoyaki offered to me, since dad and mum only buys it for me when we go out together. Dad and mum frequently had arguments, but I always got the feeling that my presence would calm both of them down significantly, like a pail of water dousing a fire.

On the journey home, our laughters died off slowly in the car. Mum had to concentrate on driving, and dad was apparently reading some night time newspapers. In disappointment that the night would soon be over and all would be back to the regular boring day the morning after, I sighed and stuck my head out of the window. The breeze that came by when the silver vehicle zooms through the night streets was rough but not unpleasant; one of the many joys of living near the sea. The winter night air was nothing compared to the warmth resonating from the heater within the car, and the warmth in my heart.

The radio was blaring the boring news, along with the countdown towards midnight.  
And just when it precisely struck twelve, our car drove onto the Moonlight Bridge.  
The bridge was empty, devoid of life.  
The weather's hue had turned a sickly green.  
The moon no longer shone pure white; it was now tainted with yellow.

Dad stopped reading and looked in front of the car. Mum panicked, trying to maintain control over the dying engines, desperately attempting to reignite the machine back into motion. The breaks no longer work, but the car was skidding towards something dark, something black, _something_ that was right in front of them. She turned the steering wheels sharply to the left.

The rest of what I remembered were mostly in fragments. There was a sensation of flying and landing harshly on the green-hued tar, my bleeding fingers and arms leaving a stark contrast of red on it. I vaguely remember hearing gunfires, some floating bunch of cloth, and a figure. Then I remembered my parents.

I hurriedly stood and raced towards my family's now overturned car; fire erupting from beneath the seats, smoke and soot emanating towards the pillars supporting the bridge. I remembered crying, wailing, and screaming for my parents to respond, all the while trying to open the doors leading to the front seat. The fire seared my hands numb, but I disregarded it, my only goal to reach mum and dad. To drag them out. To call for help. To do anything but leave them there.

The fire continued to blaze brighter, but I kept on scrambling. They did not budge from the pull of a desperate seven-year-old. It was then when a pair of hands plucked me from the car and taken me to safety, right before the car exploded and the propulsion from the explosion plunged the car into the sea. I hated the hands. They pulled me away from my only source of happiness; the light in my darkness; the hope in my despair. I hated them so much that I forcefully turned around and slapped the hand's owner as hard as I could muster.

The lady just stared back in a dead glance.

She dragged me back into her arms and held me close. She provided no warmth, but her sincere pity could be felt. Finally not being able to hold back any longer, I broke down and wailed within her embrace. Tears flowed freely. No boy could have endured this without crying, despite how mum had always told me not to because I'm a boy. Now that mum was no more. Dad liked to tell me bedtime stories. He can no longer. I can no longer hear them whisper secretively to each other, argue to each other, give me praises when I'm good, or punish me when I'm bad. None of those will be existant to me any longer.

The sympathetic lady held me closer and muttered "I'm sorry," over and over.  
Sheer curiosity suddenly held my tears back and I looked up, into her face.  
Then there was nothing.

Xxxxxxxx

And so he ended up in Tatsumi Memorial Hospital, alone.

When he finally comprehended that, everything clicked back into place like some locking mechanism. And a locking mechanism it was. There were no tears; there were no screams; there was no big impact. The damage was already done, back on the bridge. There was nothing he could do. The only thing he can manage, is to relucantly accept it all.

And so he did.

He thought that perhaps, after that incident, he would never feel emotions ever again.

* * *


	2. Side: Aegis

December 2nd, 1999.

Side: Aegis

Disclaimer : Persona 3 and it's respective characters belong to Atlus.

* * *

She knew that, from the moment she started moving in this unfamiliar realm, her fate was sealed. She was no human. She did not comprehend fear, panic, nor happiness. A soulless doll created to please it's masters. There were rumours that she was modelled after someone else, but that did not matter for Aegis. What was important was that she was functional, and could carry out every command her creators bestowed upon her.

The first time she moved and walked, there was a kind-looking woman providing her guidance on human behavioural patterns. The android knew that to co-exist with humans, she had to act like one. Almost happily, she obliged the woman's instructions. After numerous lessons, Aegis found out that she was given the permission to roam the lab; and it became one of her daily affairs.

The white corridors… the countless rooms… the untouched walls. A glance at the lab by any commoner would think that it might be a scene from a futuristic movie. But it wasn't. Aegis was a living proof of that. Clunk, clunk, her footless steps echoed through the building. As big as the lab was, not all of it's area was fully utilized. She attended shooting practices, condition monitoring, and constant exposure to human speech communication and recognition.

She never once saw the outside world; she always wondered how it looked like.

What she did know was that she was on an artificially made island, and that this facility was under a corporate body by the name of the Kirijou Group. A few months after her first day of existence, she realized her role as an anti-shadow weapon was to come into play; like a trump card thrown out by the scientists to turn the tide of battle. To mend a mistake they had made, to fulfill her purpose in life. In one night.

She was allowed to roam the outside world that night. That was because there was nobody stopping her. Her sensors and radars were feeding non-stop information of her mission, that was to eliminate Death. Moving her mechanical limbs, she slowly trudged out of her room, into the blood-smeared walls of the lab; the floor with shattered glass; the ceiling with broken fluoroscents. Out from the facility of corpses, into the cool rush of wind from the red sea; the vivid green and yellow of the sky; the blood-smeared architecture by humans.

Doing last checkups of her own mobility, she rushed towards her current destination-- the Moonlight Bridge. Just for a fleeting moment, Aegis thought she felt excited. Excited that she was no longer chained down by countless orders, excited that she was in a totally new and different environment, excited that she could exercise her freedom. When she arrived on the bridge, however, she was not entirely prepared with what she was seeing.

Death, it's face illuminated by the moonlight, giving a sideways glance at her as it shifted it's gaze from a small figure laying beside an overturned car. The 13th Arcana had it's blade raised, poised to strike.

Without a second thought, she raised her arms, shooting lead at the grim reaper while charging in an onwards rush. In the back of her mind, she already knew that it was not going to work; it was an act of diversion. To grace her time to initiate her summoning sequence. Planting a foot between the skull-headed shadow and the blue-headed child, she activated her Persona Palladion—to send it charging towards Death. There was a slight struggle between the two ethereal beings as they both flew over the bridge railings and seemingly into the red ocean. Then pain registered in her left arm as she realized that the shadow planted it's blade into Palladion's arm, as well.

Behind her, the child was scrambling back into the blazing vehicle. At the rate she was going, she was not going to end up victorious in that battle. As Palladion removed itself from the Aecanum shadow, Death reverted it's attention back to Aegis—and it's newfound human victim. In the next moment, the android found a blade embedded on her palm; the wielder attempting to dislodge her wrist. Palladion instinctively appeared to disarm the opponent with a furious slash, and Death floated backwards to dodge the attack, it's grip on the massive blade lost. Just when Aegis thought she could prevail, the blade found it's way back to it's owners hand once more. A plan clicked itself into place somewhere in the anti-shadow weapon's mind, and she carried out the practical without much thought—it was the only way possible to hold the Queen's Messenger at bay, the only option available for her.

She plucked the screaming child off the vehicle. His arms were burnt, and he was struggling to free himself from her grip. Faintly, she noticed Death was locked in a brawl with Palladion, and she knew she only had one chance to do it. The child wept relentlessly in her arms, and she could feel herself trying to reach out and provide more warmth. But it was not possible for her. Holding him closer, Aegis whispered to the child, over and over. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," were the only words she could say.

She found the child's sudden curious gaze on her.

Palladion found Death flinging them both towards the child.

Aegis found herself embedding lead into the child's head.

The moment the navy-haired child's eyes went blank, the Shadow ripped it's way through the child—to find itself trapped in it's own spell. Death against Death. A seal in it's own. Aegis just sat there as she witnessed the child raising himself to his feet, like a possessed being. He took a few steps down the bloody highway, his gaze fixed not on the overturned car, not on the woman that killed him, not at the tar road where he lost his life that night. It was fixed on the full moon. The shadow was nowhere to be seen. Palladion was nowhere to be seen. Aegis found herself sending status reports and transmissions back to the lab, and she knew that her reserved vitality was not going to last her long. She stood; watching the scene before her, the humane feeling of guilt weighing on her artificial soul. The boy collapsed just as the skies turned dark, and the moon converted from the vivid yellow to a pure white glow. It was then she found herself losing strength, as well.

* * *

Ten years after, the unfeeling child was on Iwatodai soils once more.

The child—now a teenager—stared out the train's windows at the hauntingly familiar sight of his hometown, his MP3 player blaring, barring any external contact with him. His dead-gray eyes rarely roamed; a memento from that fateful encounter. He did not know why he was back on this accursed land, why he had to be transferred to a school here. Just then, a blue butterfly fluttered past, beyond the windows. Fate's messenger. The navy-haired one glanced at it as it was left behind by the speeding rail, his face betraying slight surprise. The first emotion he felt in ages.

As he got off the train, he found himself fumbling for the brochure for his new high school—Gekkoukan High. Words describing the facilities available and the beauty of the harbour and the man-made island were scribbled all over the small paper, and he squinted slightly to look for the directions. Just when he was about to step out of the station, the hidden hour struck.

A familiar sight.

The unfeeling one just sighed and headed out the station. Coffins lined the streets, the cars stopped; the scenery similar with all the other Dark Hours he experienced. It was as if they were welcoming his return. Raising his head from the brochure, he found himself staring into an almost-full moon.

Another familiar sight.

His footsteps echoed in the silent night, and they carried him to a 4-storey high dormitory. The lights were on, which was unusual in the Dark Hour. Once again, he felt slight surprise—but did not hestitate to open the door. A child in a prisoner's uniform greeted him from behind the counter, his innocent smile flashing as he urged the teenager with gray eyes to sign a contract to seal his fate. He did not hestitate to sign his name down, either.

"_I chooseth this fate of mine own free will,"__ the contract read. Signed by Hidetoshi Aoki._

* * *

That concludes this story I tried on. About time I finished it.

Fanart to go with it can be found on my dA account.

Thanks for reading.


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